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Former politican and equality rights champion, the Honourable Edward Broadbent, P.C., C.C., Ph.D., was awarded the degree of Doctor of Laws, honoris causa, at the 2 p.m. ceremony on Wednesday, June 10, “in recognition of an outstanding political career devoted to fairness and equality.”

Ed Broadbent’s political life was always influenced by his passion for social reform and equality for all Canadians. Mr. Broadbent began his career as a member of Parliament in 1968 and served his constituents for 21 years.

While leader of the New Democratic Party from 1975 to 1989, he fought for an equitable tax system, equality for women and the constitutional entrenchment of Aboriginal rights. In his final speech in Parliament in 1989, he moved a motion, which was adopted unanimously, committing the Government of Canada to end child poverty in Canada by the year 2000.

He returned briefly to Parliament as the MP for Ottawa Centre in 2004 and retired two years later. During the 1990s, he continued his fight for equality and in 1993, he was one of four international judges on the Tribunal on Violations of Women’s Human Rights at the United Nations Conference on Human Rights in Vienna.

He was named an Officer of the Order of Canada in 1993 and a Companion of the Order of Canada in 2002. In 2005, the Globe and Mail selected him as the “Nation Builder of the Year.” A year later, Time magazine named him one of Canada’s exceptional citizens. He has published the book Democratic Equality: What Went Wrong? and many articles on human rights issues.